Venture photography

Judi101

I would echo everyone else. The photo session was fun, the photos are lovely (although having reviewed them since getting them home two of the three we bought were overexposed in parts) but very very expensive.

stayathomemumof3

We got the venture experience about a year ago and it was good. As everyone else says the pictures are great but expensive. My youngest was only about three months old and they got some brilliant shots of him. But we did spend nearly a grand on the pictures we got even if it was interest free credit.

I have found out recently that Snappy Snaps photography chain (don't know if they are all over the UK as I am in N.Ireland) do a very similar thing for a fraction of the price. Their stuff looked excellent too.

Also my friend did say if I was to lose my mind and have another child, that I'd need to go do the same thing again with them in the picture too. I hadn't thought of that at the time.

moo842

hi there
we had our photos done yesterday by venture photography, and our going back for our veiwing tomorrow.
my problem is i don't really want to pay there prices but i know i'll get sucked in when i get there! i just wandered if anyone had managed to get money off the pictures by haggaling? if so how much did you get?

ollyk

Yeah talking from experience I would not recommend anyone goes to Venture!
We were given a gift voucher by some friends so we went - we were entitled to a free small print but there were two we liked - all the rest were actually not that great!
tbh the effort they went to produce the presentation made us feel almost obliged to buy a second print - it was a lovely pic of our daughter but still it wasn't all that special - They also suggested if we didn’t purchase at least one print today our pictures would be destroyed!
I had to say something as we were given our AV presentation (they really put the pressure on here!) because he was selecting pictures for us to buy without us asking! We probably nodded our heads or said 'ahh that was nice' then he would say "ok, i'll just select that one".....
Needless to say he really didn't like this and the tone of the experience changed from then on!
Personally I came away from the whole experience feeling a little angry and tbh the photo's aren't really any different from what a bit of imagination can produce in your own garden, park or home with even a modest camera and a little post processing....
Next time if I want professional family photos I will go to a professional photographer - not some company that employs young kids who probably don't fully understand the equipment they are using....
The people who bought the vouchers for us spent a fortune and I personally thought the results were truly awfull! They weren’t worth £100 let alone £1500 or whatever they paid for them :mad:
Go and have a look at the photos, you might love them, be warned however there is a psychological pressure involved and the prices are quite extortionate...

ollyk

Oh sorry I hadn't read your post properly! Personally I think it could be worth a try! There must be such a profit margin in their prints (unless loads of people don't buy at all) that I would think threatening to leave without a sale would make them think twice - give it a go and let us know how you get on!

icklejulez

We paid ridiculous prices from a similar company paul Yaffe and bought two pictures 30x24 or so and we haggled the price down from 850 each to 600 each. At the time I was really pleased but after becoming an MSE'r Im so gutted! My friend said there family went to Venture got the free small thing and had it blown up in one of these specialist photo places, Bought a nice frame and it still only cost 150quid in total.

danielle24

Personally, I wouldn't go to one of these companies at all. I organised a family photo shoot with a friend who is handy with a digital camera. Everyone has got at least one mate who fancies themselves as a great photographer so offer them a pint or a dinner in exchange for their services for an hour or so! We had some large and clean dust sheets which we hung from the curtain rails and brought extra lighting into the room and voila - your own home studio. My little sister is a dab hand with the make up and gave us all mini makeovers. We then posed away for my friend and the result was some amazing photographs that cost next to nothing. We put them online so rellies could download them and also printed off a few nice copies at our local photo shop for the grandparents. There are plenty of websites that give you tips on the best poses and settings for the camera etc etc. Try it next time before spending big!

emjem_3

We had our viewing with Venture on Saturday. I agree with previous posts. Some of the photos were quite nice but nothing amazing.

They invest a lot of time with you but don't like to mention prices until the very end...and then the mood changes! They are very expensive and to be honest we did not think they were good value at all. We left with the 'gift' framed picture as we had been given money off vouchers by my MIL. We were told it would be about 6/8 weeks before it would be ready! Not sure why it takes that long as I'm sure they just go out the back, print off the picture and slap it into a frame! However it is a freebie!

They do go down the payment plan route . . .funnily enough it's NOT interest free!

We bought my BIL & SIL a £50 voucher from Next to get a picture of their choice blown up and printed onto a canvas as a Christmas present and it looks really good.

Or have some pictures taken by a friend and then take them to be framed yourselves. Use the Venture brochure for inspiration!

I wouldn't recommend them.

Justie

icklejulez wrote: »

My friend said there family went to Venture got the free small thing and had it blown up in one of these specialist photo places, Bought a nice frame and it still only cost 150quid in total.

I'm surprised they could get that done actually as it's a breach of copyright and it's pretty obvious that they're professional pictures

we had some Venture pictures done 18 months ago and spent way too much money on the pictures afterwards (mostly OH wanting loads) we do like them but I certainly wouldn't go back again. If you can just stick to your 'free' one then it's actually a good deal considering the studio time. I've never heard of anyone getting a discount though but if you hold out they may offer you some cheaper ones when you go and collect the one you order.

Dani85

I got a voucher from a venture party last January, was £25 for the photoshoot and a 10x8. There were a few we liked and they were trying to pressure us in to buying them all but we stook by our guns and just got the 1, although im not that keen on it now so be very careful on which you choose!! xx